Category: India

Answer by Raakhee V. Menon: There are a few that I did manage to capture during my travels in and around India. Some have made their way to my Instagram, while many others are still lying hidden in various folders on my PC, laptop, USBs, etc. Sharing a few here… The Thousand Pillared Hall at…

Answer by Raakhee V. Menon: I don’t endorse the idea of ‘Indian culture’. There is no such thing as ‘Indian culture’ whereby you have a bulleted lists of things to do and things not to do. Unlike other nations, India is a land of diverse cultures and things change when we move from one region…

Answer by Raakhee V. Menon: Because in India (and in most South Asian countries, for that matter), fair skin automatically translates to beautiful. It doesn’t matter if the facial features are far from perfect. As long as the person is fair, they are considered as beautiful/handsome. I don’t think this is an age-old system, though….

Answer by Raakhee V. Menon: Having watched both, I don’t think they can even be compared. ‘Baahubali’ is just ‘The Lion King’ in a human version.[1][2]How would it look like if somebody were to compare ‘The Lion King’ with ‘Lord of the Rings’? Both are excellent movies in their own right, but it’d be unfair…

Answer by Raakhee V. Menon: I belong to a community in India that is still matrilineal. There’s a basic difference between matrilineal and matriarchal. Many people tend to confuse between both or use one as a synonym for the other. They’re both different. A matriarchy is one where the head of the family is always…

Answer by Raakhee V. Menon: There are a few that come to mind. The criteria in the question is so specific that it’s tough to find someone who fits the bill perfectly. Priyanka Chopra People say all sorts of things about her but I personally feel that she is truly a force to reckon with….

Answer by Raakhee V. Menon: I strongly believe that the era of dual superstars is officially over. Back in the days, in every era, there would be two superstars who rule the scene as far as cinema was concerned… There was Prem Nazir and Sathyan in the 1950s and 1960s. The 1970s saw the rise…

Answer by Raakhee V. Menon: Sagarika Ghose I sincerely try NOT to follow that lady’s tweets or read anything about her, but the things she says just pops up on my news feed every now and then making me all the more angrier. By profession she an Indian journalist, news anchor and author. I’m not…

Answer by Raakhee V. Menon: Maybe they still exist but they aren’t as popular today as they were while I was growing up. Okay, I’m getting all nostalgic now as memories of all those ads come flooding into my mind… Radhas Soap It was almost a ritual for any new-face movie actress to pose with…

Answer by Raakhee V. Menon: The ages of the various characters of our epics have been a matter of great debate since forever. There are some popular versions like how it is said that Abhimanyu was 16 years old when he was killed on the battle-field, which would imply that the Pandavas (and Krishna) were…

Answer by Raakhee V. Menon: Even if one attempts to draw a line, it’s going to be very blurry. If one puts aside the matters of temple worship and all associated things, most quintessentially ‘Indian’ things are nothing but cultural. Off late, the word ‘Hindu’ has come to mean people belonging to the ‘Hindu religion’,…

Answer by Raakhee V. Menon: Bombay Vegetable Cheese Grilled Sandwich I have had several kinds of sandwiches all my life, but this one rules supreme. Commonly called ‘Veg Sandwich’ in Mumbai, it is essentially street food. Wherever you see roadside food vendor carts selling chaat items, you can be sure that there will be at…